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lisaar91's review against another edition
3.0
This was definitely a page turner! It kept you guessing right until the end.
I didn't give it five stars as I didn't really like anyone! The lead character Anna, just seemed a bit annoying.
I do love a twist though!
I didn't give it five stars as I didn't really like anyone! The lead character Anna, just seemed a bit annoying.
I do love a twist though!
constantreader471's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
This was a very good mystery, set in the south of England. It opens with a flashback to someone badly hurt and the narrator refusing to help. It is the first murder. But there is a gap of twenty years between the first set of murders and the second set. The first set is by someone called "The Ophelia Killer." The killer was never caught and when the murders start up again, panic grips the community.
One suspect is Anna Graves, who kills a young boy who attacked her and her baby. There are other suspects and I was not really sure who the killer was until near the end.
The narration goes back and forth between the killer and Anna, as Anna tries to clear her name with an unlikely ally, the brother of the boy that she killed. Anna receives emails from the killer, which frighten and sicken her. I thought that the ending worked very well.
I recommend it to British mystery fans.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for sending me this book.
This was a very good mystery, set in the south of England. It opens with a flashback to someone badly hurt and the narrator refusing to help. It is the first murder. But there is a gap of twenty years between the first set of murders and the second set. The first set is by someone called "The Ophelia Killer." The killer was never caught and when the murders start up again, panic grips the community.
One suspect is Anna Graves, who kills a young boy who attacked her and her baby. There are other suspects and I was not really sure who the killer was until near the end.
The narration goes back and forth between the killer and Anna, as Anna tries to clear her name with an unlikely ally, the brother of the boy that she killed. Anna receives emails from the killer, which frighten and sicken her. I thought that the ending worked very well.
I recommend it to British mystery fans.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for sending me this book.
portybelle's review against another edition
4.0
Radio presenter Anna Graves has recently split up from her husband and their young daughter, Joni, is her world. When a teenager, who appears to be under the influence of drugs, threatens them with a knife, Anna reacts instinctively to defend herself and her child. It’s not giving anything away to say that the boy dies. Anna, understandably, is traumatised and can’t believe what has happened. There is much discussion in the community, the media and even her own radio show about what she has done and whether other people would have done the same. This though is only the start of Anna’s nightmare as links to the past and a serial killer known as The Ophelia Killer begin to emerge and seem to suggest that Anna is not as innocent as she might appear.
I was hooked on this book from the very first intriguing chapter. This chapter, along with a few others scattered throughout the book, feature two unidentified characters who seem to be involved in the Ophelia Killer murders from years back. All through the book, I was looking for clues as to who these people might be. I think I cast suspicion on most of the characters at one point or another but of course, I couldn’t guess! Meanwhile, things are going from bad to worse for Anna. As well as the understandable guilt she is feeling, she begins to get emails supposedly from the killer suggesting that she is connected in some way. Further events in the community point to Anna’s involvement and even she starts to think she must be connected.
Tracy Buchanan has written a really well paced novel where the tension builds steadily throughout the book until I was feeling really uptight by the end. She casually dropped in bits of the puzzle which had me thinking ‘wait a minute, what happened there?’. I couldn’t imagine how Anna must be feeling. She knew what she had done was to protect her baby but at the same time, she killed a teenage boy. And then when everything else was starting to point to her involvement, she must have felt like her world was falling apart. Poor Anna didn’t know who to trust and quite honestly, neither did I! Long buried family secrets started to come to the surface too and as they did I began to feel some sympathy towards her mother, Beatrice. Beatrice hadn’t seemed to be a very likeable character at first, showing little caring towards her daughter but gradually I began to understand why she was as she was. It was also interesting and a little scary reading how circumstances and the way they are presented by the media can change public perception and have such an effect on someone’s life.
A terrific psychological thriller which will have you gripped from the beginning right to the final nail-biting pages.
Thanks to the publishers for my review copy.
I was hooked on this book from the very first intriguing chapter. This chapter, along with a few others scattered throughout the book, feature two unidentified characters who seem to be involved in the Ophelia Killer murders from years back. All through the book, I was looking for clues as to who these people might be. I think I cast suspicion on most of the characters at one point or another but of course, I couldn’t guess! Meanwhile, things are going from bad to worse for Anna. As well as the understandable guilt she is feeling, she begins to get emails supposedly from the killer suggesting that she is connected in some way. Further events in the community point to Anna’s involvement and even she starts to think she must be connected.
Tracy Buchanan has written a really well paced novel where the tension builds steadily throughout the book until I was feeling really uptight by the end. She casually dropped in bits of the puzzle which had me thinking ‘wait a minute, what happened there?’. I couldn’t imagine how Anna must be feeling. She knew what she had done was to protect her baby but at the same time, she killed a teenage boy. And then when everything else was starting to point to her involvement, she must have felt like her world was falling apart. Poor Anna didn’t know who to trust and quite honestly, neither did I! Long buried family secrets started to come to the surface too and as they did I began to feel some sympathy towards her mother, Beatrice. Beatrice hadn’t seemed to be a very likeable character at first, showing little caring towards her daughter but gradually I began to understand why she was as she was. It was also interesting and a little scary reading how circumstances and the way they are presented by the media can change public perception and have such an effect on someone’s life.
A terrific psychological thriller which will have you gripped from the beginning right to the final nail-biting pages.
Thanks to the publishers for my review copy.
hugbandit7's review against another edition
4.0
I'd probably give this 3 1/2 stars (rounded up to 4). I was originally give it 3 stars but it really picked up near the end and was not expecting the twist at the end!
The first line of the synopsis really sets the reader up for this book - "You’d kill to protect your child – wouldn’t you?". I think most people would said that yes they would to protect a child, spouse, etc if the situation warranted that drastic of an action. But how would you feel and act and react in the months following? Probably a lot like our main character Anna. She feels guilty about the situation and honestly didn't mean to kill the teen that appeared to be attacking them and acting crazy. How was she to know that there was more to the situation than meets the eye?
What follows in the rest of the book is Anna dealing with her guilt, trying to figure out why the teen was crazy, trying to protect her child, and investigating these deaths and are were the deaths perpetrated by The Ophelia Killer (TOK) from 20 years ago that her father was investigating for an article?
The first 2/3 of the book fill in a lot of details and history is explained somewhat of the TOK but to me were a bit slow. Plus most of the chapters were really really long (personal preference is to stop at a chapter and was sometimes hard in this book). I also didn't understand how a comb could kill a person even if they fell on it because that would have to be a lot of force for a comb to penetrate the skin (assuming plastic comb vs metal).
There are many characters to not like and a few red herrings mixed in to get you thinking that someone was behind all this that wasn't really. I felt for Anna because of all the negative press she was receiving and how everyone painted her in a bad light and made assumptions that just weren't true. Most of that was tied to the media and the stories they reported. Not too surprising considering what we see in the media today.
The first line of the synopsis really sets the reader up for this book - "You’d kill to protect your child – wouldn’t you?". I think most people would said that yes they would to protect a child, spouse, etc if the situation warranted that drastic of an action. But how would you feel and act and react in the months following? Probably a lot like our main character Anna. She feels guilty about the situation and honestly didn't mean to kill the teen that appeared to be attacking them and acting crazy. How was she to know that there was more to the situation than meets the eye?
What follows in the rest of the book is Anna dealing with her guilt, trying to figure out why the teen was crazy, trying to protect her child, and investigating these deaths and are were the deaths perpetrated by The Ophelia Killer (TOK) from 20 years ago that her father was investigating for an article?
The first 2/3 of the book fill in a lot of details and history is explained somewhat of the TOK but to me were a bit slow. Plus most of the chapters were really really long (personal preference is to stop at a chapter and was sometimes hard in this book). I also didn't understand how a comb could kill a person even if they fell on it because that would have to be a lot of force for a comb to penetrate the skin (assuming plastic comb vs metal).
There are many characters to not like and a few red herrings mixed in to get you thinking that someone was behind all this that wasn't really. I felt for Anna because of all the negative press she was receiving and how everyone painted her in a bad light and made assumptions that just weren't true. Most of that was tied to the media and the stories they reported. Not too surprising considering what we see in the media today.
mhoffrob's review against another edition
3.0
With thanks to Crooked Lane Books for the advanced reader copy. This title will be published 6/13/17.
I really enjoyed No Turning Back by Tracy Buchanan. A psychological thriller/mystery, the novel follows an English radio presenter (what Americans would refer to as a talk radio host) as she navigates through her return to work from maternity leave, while separating from her husband. Soon, she is confronted by a teen on the beach while walking with her daughter. Feeling threatened, the encounter ends in the death of the teen. While initially she is lauded for protecting her infant, soon events spiral and her motives and connections are questions. her seaside town still remembers the unsolved murders of 20 years before by the Ophelia Killer - and rumors run rampant as events unfold.
The book is a relatively quick read, providing clues throughout, but none that really point to the endings. In that respect, I found it a bit unsatisfactory, since the true climax and resolution of the mystery seemed a bit out of left field. Still, an enjoyable read.
I really enjoyed No Turning Back by Tracy Buchanan. A psychological thriller/mystery, the novel follows an English radio presenter (what Americans would refer to as a talk radio host) as she navigates through her return to work from maternity leave, while separating from her husband. Soon, she is confronted by a teen on the beach while walking with her daughter. Feeling threatened, the encounter ends in the death of the teen. While initially she is lauded for protecting her infant, soon events spiral and her motives and connections are questions. her seaside town still remembers the unsolved murders of 20 years before by the Ophelia Killer - and rumors run rampant as events unfold.
The book is a relatively quick read, providing clues throughout, but none that really point to the endings. In that respect, I found it a bit unsatisfactory, since the true climax and resolution of the mystery seemed a bit out of left field. Still, an enjoyable read.
k_west1984's review against another edition
5.0
I love a book with a shock and this book ad it! Brilliant
mpr2000's review against another edition
4.0
When Anna Graves tries to protect her daughter and kills a young boy, her worst nightmare will start... she will have to face gossip, press abuse and a serial killer that wants to be "friends"... Is she ready to face the truth?
Between memories from the past and the present story, this thriller becomes a quite interesting read!
Anna is newly divorced and the first days to return work after maternity leave she will kill someone to protect her little one... everyone will have an opinion about it, and not all of them good! This was an interesting starting point, would you trust someone who killed to protect their baby? This is quite a question, because I really don't know, I am not sure if I would be strong enough to kill to protect, to die, yes, but killing is a strong word and you never know what you can do in a pressure moment!
Anna will not have just the attention of everyone because she killed, but because it seems that there's a killer that is searching for her attention and is ready to kill again, after 20 year of being inactive...
Anna has a dysfunctional family, but everything will be centred in the suicide of her father that was investigating the Ophelia's killer, did he know anything, was he the killer... so many questions!
Between the depressing mother, the resentful brother, the "helpful" brother of the dead boy and her grandmother, Anna will have to unravel the identity of the killer and some dark secrets if she wants to continue her life!
This is one of those books that you suspect from everyone, even from Anna! and that would be an amazing and suspenseful movie!
With some surprising twists and a lot of suspense, this book will keep you guessing till the last page.
What would you do to protect your child?
Between memories from the past and the present story, this thriller becomes a quite interesting read!
Anna is newly divorced and the first days to return work after maternity leave she will kill someone to protect her little one... everyone will have an opinion about it, and not all of them good! This was an interesting starting point, would you trust someone who killed to protect their baby? This is quite a question, because I really don't know, I am not sure if I would be strong enough to kill to protect, to die, yes, but killing is a strong word and you never know what you can do in a pressure moment!
Anna will not have just the attention of everyone because she killed, but because it seems that there's a killer that is searching for her attention and is ready to kill again, after 20 year of being inactive...
Anna has a dysfunctional family, but everything will be centred in the suicide of her father that was investigating the Ophelia's killer, did he know anything, was he the killer... so many questions!
Between the depressing mother, the resentful brother, the "helpful" brother of the dead boy and her grandmother, Anna will have to unravel the identity of the killer and some dark secrets if she wants to continue her life!
This is one of those books that you suspect from everyone, even from Anna! and that would be an amazing and suspenseful movie!
With some surprising twists and a lot of suspense, this book will keep you guessing till the last page.
What would you do to protect your child?
ecclescake's review against another edition
5.0
Reading this reminded me of watching the first series of Broadchurch. I suspected everyone in turn, coming up with theory after theory, only for them to be thwarted; the truth more shocking than any of my outlandish theories.
Absolutely brilliant!
Absolutely brilliant!
usbsticky's review against another edition
1.0
1 star = I didn't like it.
I started off really liking it. I liked the characters and the writing was easy to read and follow. The protagonist Anna's life was quite complicated but I could live with that. My enjoyment of the story started to unravel after Anna stabbed Elliot (the boy). This is all on the back of the book so I'm not spoiling anything.
What I didn't like and found unrealistic was the way the book and the people treated Anna. In the story Anna was defending herself from the boy when she stabbed him accidentally. This is not a secret. Why was everyone treating her like a murderer? People were not acting realistically. This all came to a head when strangers on a train started to confront and accuse her of being a killer and even grabbed her wrist. Really? People don't do that in real life. The strangers on the train were just the beginning. Anna's co-workers, supporting characters in the story, I felt that none of them were written with realism and I lost interest in the book.
Apart from that I didn't feel the story flowed well. Overall, I was disappointed after a good start.
I got this book as a free review copy.
Edit: After I posted my review I read some of the 5 star reviews and they were terrible. I don't even think some of the people read them, they just regurgitated some of the plot and added some cliche praises. Sad face.
I started off really liking it. I liked the characters and the writing was easy to read and follow. The protagonist Anna's life was quite complicated but I could live with that. My enjoyment of the story started to unravel after Anna stabbed Elliot (the boy). This is all on the back of the book so I'm not spoiling anything.
What I didn't like and found unrealistic was the way the book and the people treated Anna. In the story Anna was defending herself from the boy when she stabbed him accidentally. This is not a secret. Why was everyone treating her like a murderer? People were not acting realistically. This all came to a head when strangers on a train started to confront and accuse her of being a killer and even grabbed her wrist. Really? People don't do that in real life. The strangers on the train were just the beginning. Anna's co-workers, supporting characters in the story, I felt that none of them were written with realism and I lost interest in the book.
Apart from that I didn't feel the story flowed well. Overall, I was disappointed after a good start.
I got this book as a free review copy.
Edit: After I posted my review I read some of the 5 star reviews and they were terrible. I don't even think some of the people read them, they just regurgitated some of the plot and added some cliche praises. Sad face.
cservat129's review against another edition
4.0
Review:
This book did pull me in right from the very beginning when Anna was having an argument with Heather, the producer/manager of her talk radio show. Anna is looking very argumentative and maybe a bit hostile already then wham a walk on the beach with radio show host Anna and her baby daughter Joni goes horribly wrong and a teenager is killed. Not only is this teenager "accidentally" killed at Anna's hand but the manner in which he is killed is a bit gruesome. I know Anna was protecting her baby daughter but this teenagers death kept nagging at me, I kept thinking that Anna acted too quick and maybe jumped to judgement about the whole situation a bit too soon and that is what pulled me into this book. There was so much more to this senseless (maybe, maybe not) death and I wanted to find out everything. We soon find out that Anna, who is going through a separation isn't perfect, she does have flaws but so does her soon to be ex-husband. It is disturbing how quickly things start to go wrong for Anna, how fast people turn against her when some things about her past surface. Anna has a bit of a romance which I found added a nice touch to this book. Anna's family except for her grandmother are not at all supportive. No one is team Anna except her grandmother and this so called romantic interest. There is a lot going on on this book, the Ophelia killer resurfaces after twenty years and was Elliot , the murdered teenager somehow involved? Through many twists and turns and false leads all is revealed in a very dramatic and surprising scene. To say surprising is a bit of an understatement , creepy and macabre describes the conclusion as well.
Final Thoughts:
I found this to be a great mystery/suspense book with a creepy and disturbing twist.This review was originally posted on Cindy's Book Binge
This book did pull me in right from the very beginning when Anna was having an argument with Heather, the producer/manager of her talk radio show. Anna is looking very argumentative and maybe a bit hostile already then wham a walk on the beach with radio show host Anna and her baby daughter Joni goes horribly wrong and a teenager is killed. Not only is this teenager "accidentally" killed at Anna's hand but the manner in which he is killed is a bit gruesome. I know Anna was protecting her baby daughter but this teenagers death kept nagging at me, I kept thinking that Anna acted too quick and maybe jumped to judgement about the whole situation a bit too soon and that is what pulled me into this book. There was so much more to this senseless (maybe, maybe not) death and I wanted to find out everything. We soon find out that Anna, who is going through a separation isn't perfect, she does have flaws but so does her soon to be ex-husband. It is disturbing how quickly things start to go wrong for Anna, how fast people turn against her when some things about her past surface. Anna has a bit of a romance which I found added a nice touch to this book. Anna's family except for her grandmother are not at all supportive. No one is team Anna except her grandmother and this so called romantic interest. There is a lot going on on this book, the Ophelia killer resurfaces after twenty years and was Elliot , the murdered teenager somehow involved? Through many twists and turns and false leads all is revealed in a very dramatic and surprising scene. To say surprising is a bit of an understatement , creepy and macabre describes the conclusion as well.
Final Thoughts:
I found this to be a great mystery/suspense book with a creepy and disturbing twist.This review was originally posted on Cindy's Book Binge